"Had my son's friends been exposed to his behaviours through something that they had seen on TV before they experienced them in the classroom, they might not have been frightened," she told 60 Minutes.

"They might not have been worried when he cried. They would have known that he plays in a different way, and that that's OK."

At this point it's not known if Julia will become a major character on the show, but Ms Ferraro - who has been writing it for 25 years - is keen.

"I would love her to be not Julia, the kid on Sesame Street who has autism," she said. "I would like her to be just Julia."